Latest Pollution Headlines
All the headlines from our Pollution Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Obama Climate Rules Unpopular in GOP South
Jul 31 2014 // In the Republican-heavy Southeast, critics said this week that a plan by President Barack Obama’s administration to cut pollution would raise electricity prices, result in job losses and may not significantly curtail...
Freedom Industries Pays $11,000 Fine in West Virginia Chemical Spill
Jul 30 2014 // The company that spilled chemicals into West Virginia’s largest water supply has paid an $11,000 fine for a pair of violations. The Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined Freedom...
Climate Change Debate in Denver Pits Coal Miners vs. Skiers
Jul 30 2014 // Coal miners took on skiers, and environmentalists dueled with business groups as the public debated sweeping rules from the Obama administration to combat global warming in a nationwide series of hearings yesterday. At the...
Inaction on Climate Change Costs Economy: White House
Jul 30 2014 // As the Obama administration defends its efforts to curb carbon emissions this week, it’s taking a new tack: arguing that it is smart economic planning. A new White House report says the cost of fighting climate...
Cause of Blaze at North Dakota Oil Supply Company Unknown
Jul 23 2014 // More than half a day after an industrial fire broke out in the North Dakota oil patch town of Williston, N.D., authorities still were unable to say what caused the massive blaze. The fire, which started around midnight...
Pennsylvania Auditor Cites Flaws in Gas Drilling Regulation
Jul 23 2014 // Strained by the rapid expansion of natural gas drilling in Pennsylvania and limited resources, environmental regulators have failed to adequately monitor well safety or to provide clear and timely information to citizens,...
Freedom Industries, West Virginia Businesses Seek $2.9M Insurance Payout for Chemical Spill
Jul 21 2014 // At least $2.9 million could fuel studies in a proposed settlement between West Virginia businesses and residents and the company that contaminated their water supply. The deal between lawyers for Freedom Industries and...
Settlement in New Mexico Stemmed from Air Pollution Allegations
Jul 21 2014 // The owner of a natural gas plant in southeastern New Mexico has agreed to pay the state nearly $70,000 to settle a case involving allegations of air quality violations. The New Mexico Environment Department announced the...
Florida Gov. Scott Agrees to Meet with Climate Scientists
Jul 18 2014 // Florida Gov. Rick Scott said his administration would be “happy to meet” with 10 scientists from Florida universities who want to talk about climate change, a subject he has been reluctant to address. A letter...
Liberty Mutual Inks Reinsurance Deal with Berkshire’s National Indemnity
Jul 18 2014 // Liberty Mutual Insurance said it has reached a deal with National Indemnity Co. (NICO), a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., on a combined aggregate adverse development cover for substantially all of Liberty...
Aon Launches Custom Liability Product for Railroad Industry
Jul 17 2014 // Aon Risk Solutions, the global risk management business of Aon plc, has launched a new product designed to support the railroad industry, including Class I railroads. Called the Cantilever Excess Pollution Liability...
Settlement in New Mexico Stemmed from Air Pollution Allegations
Jul 14 2014 // The owner of a natural gas plant in southeastern New Mexico has agreed to pay the state nearly $70,000 to settle a case involving allegations of air quality violations. The New Mexico Environment Department announced the...
No Air Quality Testing During West Virginia Chemical Tank Demolition
Jul 14 2014 // State and federal environmental officials say they don’t have a way to monitor air quality as chemical storage tanks are taken down at the industrial site that fouled public drinking supplies for 300,000 West...
Asbestos Complaint Forces Idaho Agency to Pay $56,000
Jul 10 2014 // The Environmental Protection Agency says Idaho inmates were exposed to asbestos when they were sent to work at an Idaho Transportation Department maintenance shop without proper training or equipment. The federal agency...
Chemical Spill Caused Health Effects for 1 in 5 West Virginians: Survey
Jul 9 2014 // One in five West Virginians who responded to a survey thought they had health issues after a chemical spill into the water supply in January. In the survey conducted in April by state and federal health officials, 36...
Why Conservatives’ Climate Policy Won’t Work: Flavelle
Jul 8 2014 // There’s a lot to like about Eli Lehrer’s argument for National Review that conservatives should stop downplaying global warming and instead try to take advantage of it. But beyond demonstrating the promise of...
New Jersey Superfund Site Lawsuit Allowed to Proceed
Jul 7 2014 // A lawsuit filed against a New Jersey town and county and the Army Corps of Engineers over the nearly $80 million cleanup of a Raritan Bay Superfund site can proceed, a federal judge ruled last week. U.S. District Judge...
Climate Change Bottom-Line Talk Grows, S&P Director Says
Jul 7 2014 // Companies and governments worldwide are changing their behaviors and examining their risks in the face of climate change, a managing director for Standard & Poor’s said, holding up the insurance industry as a...
N.J.’s Proposed New Rules for Coastal Development Drawing Concerns
Jul 1 2014 // Environmentalists say New Jersey’s proposed new rules for coastal development would place more people and property at risk from future storms like Superstorm Sandy. At the first of three public hearings on the...
European Insurance Federation Opposes Compulsory Environmental Liability
Jul 1 2014 // “An EU-wide compulsory environmental liability insurance system would not benefit customers and so should not be introduced,” according to Insurance Europe, the European insurance and reinsurance...
